Pets in Space 9: Ten Original Science Fiction Romances

Shiftgems #3 (Failed Colony)

by Carol Van Natta (Editor/Contributor), R.J. Blain, Honey Phillips

Blast off with Pets in Space 9, a thrilling anthology that blends heart-pounding sci-fi with swoon-worthy romance!

Dive into 10 never-before-published tales from award-winning and USA TODAY bestselling authors R.J. Blain, Honey Phillips, Carol Van Natta, Kenzie Kelly, S.J. Pajonas, Demelza Carlton, Leslie Chase, Greta van der Rol, E.G. Manetti, and Evelyn Lederman. Each novella features extraordinary pets — from a telepathic feline on a distant planet to a brave dog in a futuristic city — standing by their heroes through love, danger, and epic quests.

Immerse yourself in worlds where love knows no bounds and pets steal the spotlight. With stories full of action, mystery, and romance, this anthology has something for everyone. You'll cheer for the intrepid heroes and heroines who fight to save their friends and find their happily-ever-afters. Plus, every purchase supports Hero Dogs, a charity that provides trained service dogs to veterans and first responders.

Explore a galaxy of romance and adventure in Pets in Space 9 today. Limited edition — don’t miss out!

1189 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 8, 2024

About the author

Carol Van Natta writes science fiction and fantasy, including Overload Flux, Minder Rising, Zero Flux, Pico's Crush, and Jumper's Hope, the first five books in a space opera series; In Graves Below (Magic, NM) , a paranormal romance; and Hooray for Holopticon , a retro science fiction comedy. She shares her Fort Collins, CO home with a sometime mad scientist and various cats. Any violations of the laws of physics in her books is the fault of the cats, not the mad scientist. Be the first to know about new releases by signing up for her newsletter at bit.ly/CVN-news or read her blog at Author.CarolVanNatta.com, or find her on Facebook at CarolVanNattaAuthor.

Reviews

[Sophia]

Nine anthologies in and I'm still preordering as soon as these come available and relishing the read of old favorites and new-to-me potential favs brought together in one smashing sci-fi romance collection of standalone novellas. My modus operandi is to read a few at a time and that will be the case once again.

I've started with:
Starlane Crossroads by Carol Van Natta 4.5 stars
# Central Galactic Concordance

The administrator for an independently governed space station stumbles on a murdered CGC government agent who was not greatly liked on a space station full of people who prefer less government oversight. With the help of her station security chief, she must solve the murder before the nearby planet authorities and the galactic government arrives with complications. They both have wounds in their past, but a friendship and promise of more gels between them even with her security chief's secrets.

As usual, I loved being back in the Central Galactic Concordance world and the amazing sci-fi world, character and story development that comes with it.

[Babydoclaz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful anthology of sci fi romances with all kinds of pets in space. One of my favorite authors, EG Manetti has a great story in Sabotaged, which is a welcome addition to her Thirteen Systems. I loved the sweet first story Failed Colony, by RJ Blain. Honey Phillips is always a good read but her Lone Cyborg had a few plot holes that took me out of the story. Carol Van Natta's Starlane Crossroads is an excellent read with great characters and plot. I would love to read more in that universe. Khanet by Kenzie Kelly was also a great read; have not read this author before, so glad to discover her. SJ Pajonas has an enjoyable entry into her Kimura Sisters books, Winta's Perfect Pair. If I didn't have animal allergies, I'd love to hang out at Great Menagerie Book Club. Besides who doesn't love foxes? Daedelus by Demelza Carlton is hilarious when you sort out what's causing the mystery missing fish. The President's Daughter is a great read; I always enjoy a story by Greta van der Rol. The Purrfect Trip by Evelyn Lederman has amazing feline crew and a great story. Royal Cargo by Leslie Chase has an adorable pet. The writing in this story is not as strong, but it was still a nice addition to the anthology. Purchases of this anthology benefit Hero-Dogs.org, a charity that trains and places support dogs with disabled veterans and first responders. I look forward to the next Pets in Space!

[Lola · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always look forward to the Pets in Space anthology each year. I always look forward to the Pets in Space anthology each year. I got my copy on release day and am making my way through it. I got an ARC of one of the stories.

Winta's Perfect Pair by S.J. Pajonas
I received a free copy from the author and voluntarily reviewed it.

I really like the Kimura Sisters series by SJ Pajonas and was excited for this newest story following Winta. I really enjoyed this one, it had a lovely romance, the theme was interesting and I liked reading about Winta. Winta hasn't had the best luck when it comes to romance and she still hasn't found her animal pairing.

I liked reading about Winta, she's kind and helpful as well as passionate for the things she believes in. And when she judges too harshly, she realized her mistake and that was nice to see too. I liked her romance with Daichi, he was so good for her and I loved seeing how he was there for her. There is very little drama in their romance, Winta hasn't had the best luck with men in the past and is a bit wary, but Daichi slowly wins her over. His animal pair was cute too.

Another thing I liked was the theme of technological advancement as well as tradition, this book deals with the struggle between the two and also shows how the two can go hand in in hand. It was interesting to see where the plot went and it definitely wasn't what I had expected at first, but I liked seeing it progress and the ending was great.

Definitely make sure you get the bonus scenes as I felt those really added to the story and had a nice epilogue vibe.

Failed Colony by R.J. Blain
I read one of R.J. Blain's books before in Pets in Space 8, so I knew what to expect from her writing style and easily got into this story. This one starts off with a bit of a survival vibe. It was a bit sad at time,s but turned more uplifting once the main character meets the alien Veloc. The alien Veloc are so interesting to read about and I liked reading more about them. There are plenty of pets and cute animals. I enjoyed reading this story.

I wouldn't really classify this as scifi romance tough as there's just the barest hint of a possible romance, but it's just a hint and not really an integral part of the story. I don't really mind as I really enjoyed the story, but I had expected a bit more romance. I thought the ending was a bit abrupt and would've liked to see a bit more of where the main character ends up going and what her future looks like.

Starlane Crossroads by Carol Van Natta
After those two stories I decided to read Starlane Crossroads, one of my most anticipated stories in this anthology. It was really good. I love Carol Van Natta's writing style and easily flew through this story. I liked the space station setting, for some reason those don't seem as common for scifi romance books, but I really like it as a setting. I liked the main characters and their various pets and seeing them grow closer. There was enough depth to their characters and they both had their struggles and some tough things they went through in the past. I liked seeing them open up to each other.

The ending felt a bit rushed and I hadn't realized it was over already until I saw the author bio. I also got a bit confused trying to remember who the various CPS side characters were and which role they played. There was a pov chapter from a side character and I still don't know what that added, or maybe I forgot their name and missed something. While the CPS side characters were hard to remember who was who, I didn't have that trouble with the other side characters. I liked how the female main character had a close best friend who ran an animal shelter. And there is an interesting security side character as well. All in all this was a great story.

The President’s Daughter by Greta van der Rol
DNF'd this one. I really enjoyed one of Greta van der Rol's stories in Pets in Space 6, but this one didn't work for me. I didn't like the male lead, the way he used money to pay his attendant to uncover the name of the female character and a lot of his internal dialogue didn't work for me. I just didn't like him and didn't feel the connection with the female main character. The female main character and her animal companion I liked more, but not enough to want to continue.

Royal Cargo by Leslie Chase
I started this one as I liked the title, this was a new to me author. I enjoyed this story. I liked the main characters and their connection and caring for each other was obvious. Their romance develops quickly, but I didn't mind and thought that worked here. The flying cat also was a fun addition and I liked the collar that made the humans be able to understand him. I liked seeing the story progress and there was a satisfying conclusion.

Sabotaged by E.G. Manetti
This was another new to me author. I really enjoyed this story and I definitely plan to read more books by this author. The plot was engaging and I liked seeing how it progressed. The characters were interesting and I liked their connection as well as romance. The pet was cute and played an important part in the story. It was clear this was part of a larger series with hints to world building, characters and events, but this mostly made me feel curious to check out the rest of the series and I was able to enjoy this story as standalone. The ending wrapped things up well and was a satisfying conclusion to the story.

[Carmen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Entertainment

I love the annual Pets In Space book. Each story is full of romance and action with a cute little space pet for flavor. It’s hard to say which story is a favorite because I enjoyed them all. But I really want a cat with wings. I think those were my favorite pets this year. Then there was the fish stealing owl shifter and the mechanical bird on Mars so hard to pick out a favorite so just buy the book and enjoy them all as I did.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

9th Hero Dogs Anthology

I got this to support Hero Dogs but also for Honey Phillips entry.
Every addition to the Cyborgs on Mars series adds something new to make me even more curious to see what will happen next.
The other entries are worth a read as well.

[Adena Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Flying cats, invisible dogs, eight-legged rats - lots of animals to love and to snicker at as they all play matchmaker. As a sci-fi romance fan, this was worth the trouble of picking up and devouring.

[Andrea Frankel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another wonderful anthology in this series! There was only one entry I DNF'd (most anthologies I read, it's about 1/3 of the entries), and there were several that sent me looking into a new-to-me author's blacklist. If you enjoy SF and entertaining animals, definitely give this a read.

[Te Kee · Rating 5 out of 5]

outstanding

Always a fun read.😺 Something to look forward to…wish the tales were full length, longer, more, more more….thank you for the ninth time😺

[Piper · Rating 4 out of 5]

The lone Cyborg

[Kay Mack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story collection!

Nine collections in and the stories are still very readable. Of course the animals are the big draw. For me anyway. And they are a delight!

[Laz the Sailor · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fun collection. I haven't read all of them, but this one caught my eye. I'm familiar with a couple of the authors, and I hope to discover new ones.

Finished: Several of these stories follow a similar structure, which may be steered by the requirements (novella length, include a pet). A couple rely on the setting from an ongoing series, others are stand-alone. The animals and pets have varied roles in the plots, from primary to tertiary. The sexy bits run from off-screen to detailed.

Failed Colony - R.J. Blain - Interesting and well developed story that ends up being quite complicated for a short book. Humans dispersing and forgetting their history, multiple species, both advanced and not. First-contact and adaptation. Minimal romance, but an intriguing universe. I may check out other books by this author.

The Lone Cyborg - Honey Phillips - A cute story with lots of nice details. Oddly, some gaps too, such as the need for oxygen masks.

Starlane Crossroads - Carol Van Natta - a charming story, but it has trouble as a stand-alone novella. There are too many different factions and prior events that can't be ignored. Slow-burn.

Khanet - Kenzie Kelly - A nice intro to a space opera with romance. Slow burn but worth it. Plenty of secondary characters to seed the series.

Winta's Perfect Pair - S.J. Pajonas - A sweet story with slightly over-simplified motivations. This series is charming.

Daedalus - Demelza Carlton - Intriguing tale with a soft back-story. Two awkward loners on a fairly simple mission. The shifter aspect ended up being a factor for some sexy scenes.

The President's Daughter - Greta van der Rol - Fun escape/rescue story.

Sabotaged - E.G. Manetti - Exciting part of the Twelve Systems series. Nice plot and some sexy bits. Not a good entry point for the series, with lots of references to past events, as well as advancing arcs.

The Purrfect Trip - Evelyn Lederman - best use of "pets" in this collection. Lots of intrigue and excitement.

Royal Cargo - Leslie Chase - Clever story involving secret cargo and multi-level intrigue and traitors.